Just back from four and a half hours of Boris; it didn't seem that long at all. I'm glad I got to see/hear René Pape in the role; what a beautiful performer he is. In fact, there were quite a few beautiful baritone and/or bass voices in this production, but each one had such a distinctive quality that there was nothing monotone-ish about the performance. I liked this Boris. A LOT.

I was very sorry to hear of Verrett's death. My only live encounter with her was when she sang Queen Elizabeth in a Maggio Musicale Firenze production of "Maria Stuarda", Sanzogno conducting, at the Edinburgh Festival in 1969. In retrospect, I'm dubious about the edition that was used, but hearing her voice offstage and then her arrival in a litter onstage at the start of the opera made my heart miss a whole lot of beats. The rest of the cast (Gencer, Tagliavini et al) weren't anywhere near her standard.

I recall seeing Verrett twice. Once was in recital at IU in 1974, in which she sang a varied program (including "Una voce poco fa") with graceful assurance.

The year before, when I spent the summer in London, I saw her in a new Carmen production at Covent Garden, and for once Carmen was as magnetic as those onstage say she is. I'll never forget her entry on Escamillo's arm in the last act, dazzling in ivory mantilla. And unlike the occasion Andrew just mentioned, her companions were every bit her equal: Domingo, Te Kanawa, Van Dam. It was quite an evening.

Yesterday, at one of Opera Roanoke's "filler" recitals I heard something I've never encountered before. The baritone, Richard Zeller, closed a program that was mostly German lieder with a solo version of the Te Deum from Tosca ("Va, Tosca")...Never heard it without the traditional chorus before. It needs the chorus.